Thread Tension when Sewing M90

Can I go ahead and start sewing? Don't want to ruin all that material!

Try tearing the seam apart with your hands just to make sure seam is good

If the needle and bobbin threads show through the opposite side about the same it should be good

I never adjust my tension – it's always pretty balanced – Gutterman regular thread, Schmetz Universal needle, 2 mm stitch (12.5 per inch), Janome machine

One problem I have occasionally is I drop stitches or there's a "bird's nest" on the bottom side. If you don't have that it's good.

I used M50 which is a bit lighter and haven't had problems

I would use the finest needle you have. I use a #100 gauge needle – different scale.
The Gutermann thread may be a little heavy for M90. A finer synthetic or poly-cotton might be better. I use Rasant 120 for that, but buying it in America seems hard.
If you can see the locking part of the stitch from both sides the tension seems balanced, but the thread may be a bit heavy.
Overall tension has to be judged by eye, but you do not want any puckering of the fabric. You may have to hold the fabric front and rear and stretch it slightly: it is very light.

Addiction …

Cheers

Thanks Roger for the suggestion of using a different thread – I've read that the Gutterman I'm using can feel rough on the skin according to some.

Although Sew-All seems to be the benchmark according to most sites and sources, can anyone suggest an alternative, lighterweight thread available in Canada?

However, I suspect the stich is balanced as the needle and bobbin threads show through equally. I tried pulling appart and at most the holes in the fabric stretched – but the thread held fine.

It sounds like what you have works, so why bother looking for something else.

I use Gutterman inside sleeping bag and it feels fine.

If you get some other thread, it may not work with your machine.

Guterman sew-all is their Mara thread in metric size 100 (TEX 30). Mara is available in size 120 (TEX 25), the same size as the rasant thread Roger recommended. Commonly available (at retail fabric stores) serger threads are usually TEX 27. Frankly, though, these threads are close enough together in size, that I wouldn't buy one instead of what you've got. Mara 150 (TEX 20) is what I'd use for m90.

Mara 100 is a corespun poly thread, with a core of polyester mono-filament strands, wrapped in spun poly, and two of those twisted together. It's fine next to the skin, it's what I've used in many pairs of underwear…

It's possible your tension problem is that you're using a needle that's too *small*. A #8/50 needle is very small for tex 30 thread. Try a 10/60 or even a 12/70, and see if you get better stitches.

I tried a 70/10 sharp with Sew-All on 3 layers of M90, tension set at just between A (4) and 3. Worked a bit better, but its difficult to say.

The needle didnt make a distinct cutting sound as with the 60/8 sharp though.

I will play around with it more, but tension doesnt seem to need as much adjustment with a 70/10. Thanks for the tips!

I'm noticing that stiches fluctuate between the samples of the same fabric – without adjusting the tension. Slowly but surely….

You're all right – this IS addictive. I might start sewing with the tea-towels and tablecloths if I don't go out and get more fabric to play with.